Obama VS WikiLeaks

In phone calls Saturday to the leaders of Turkey and Mexico, Obama deplored the WikiLeaks release of once-secret diplomatic cables — some of which contained criticism of those two nations, and others.

Obama “expressed his regrets for the deplorable action by WikiLeaks and the two leaders agreed that it will not influence or disrupt the close cooperation between the United States and Turkey,” said a White House readout of the conversation with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In cables released by WikiLeaks, some U.S. diplomats raised questions about Turkey’s reliability as a global partner, given the rise of pro-Islamist and anti-Israel sentiments within its government.

According to the White House readout, Obama and Erdogan “discussed the enduring importance of the U.S.-Turkish partnership and affirmed their commitment to work together on a broad range of issues.”

Other cables released by WikiLeaks, U.S. officials raised questions about Mexico’s ability to fight the drug war — hence an Obama call to President Felipe Calderon.

“The Presidents discussed the deplorable actions by WikiLeaks and agreed its irresponsible acts should not distract our two countries from our important cooperation,” said the White House statement.

The statement also cited other U.S.-Mexican issues, leavened with praise for Calderon: